Crying Moon
by Spunky0ne
Summary: After going missing for five years following the war with the quincies, Byakuya is found by Ichigo. Finding that the clan leader and taichou is afflicted with amnesia and without his powers, the Kuchiki elders ask Ichigo to protect Byakuya as they try to unravel what happened to the noble during his long absence...Ichigo/Byakuya, Renji/Tetsuya...mpreg
1. Lost Star

**Crying Moon**

**(This story would not exist, except for Berty05's comment in a review for **_**Between Twilight and Dawn**_**, in which this wonderful reader commented that Ichigo should be Byakuya's bodyguard. And because I am channeling a lot of Ichigo/Bya lately, I thought I would do a story where it was Ichigo who was in love with Byakuya when he disappeared for a time, then reappeared under suspicious circumstances. So, this shares a basic tenet with the Bya/Ren **_**Between Twilight and Dawn**_**, but will have it's own unique flavor. I love it when reviewers set off my muse! Thanks so much Berty05! You're the best!)**

**XXXXXXXXXX**

**Chapter 1: Lost Star**

"Hey Renji," Ichigo said, glancing at the redhead as they flash stepped through the darkness of the underground cavern that led to Hueco Mundo.

"Hmmm?" Renji muttered, still focused on the blackness in front of them, "What is it?"

"I was just thinking that it's kinda funny, Kyouraku Soutaichou sending you and me to check out that reiatsu flare they sensed earlier. It's kind of like the blind leading the blind. We may be taichou level, but we still both suck at reiatsu sensing."

"That's why you bozos have Tetsuya and me, you fool!" Rukia huffed, off-handedly, "I think Soutaichou is perfectly aware you two couldn't sense what was detected. Don't you understand? He had another reason for sending the four of us on this mission."

"Oh?" Ichigo said, frowning, "Why's that?"

Rukia exchanged glances with Tetsuya and Renji, and the redhead nodded briefly. Then, Rukia continued.

"The reiatsu flare contained the signature of a missing taichou," she said quietly, "Nii-sama's."

Ichigo's mind froze at the words, and he slid to a stop on the glowing reiatsu trail the three had been making as they ran.

"What?" he asked, his features paling, "You mean that they sensed _Byakuya's _reiatsu? Are you sure?"

"If they were sure," Tetsuya said softly, "they would have sent a recovery team. That they sent the four of us means that they aren't sure. We were closest to him at the time of his disappearance. We'll be able to tell them if what they sensed was him or not."

"Damn..." Ichigo mused as the four started to flash step together again, "Byakuya, he's been gone for almost five years. Do they really think that he's still alive?"

"I don't know," Rukia admitted, "But I have to find out. I owe Byakuya everything. He is my brother."

"Renji and I owe him as well," Tetsuya agreed, "Renji, because Byakuya-sama was a mentor and friend to him, and me, because he saved my life."

"He's important to all of us," Ichigo agreed, his mind traveling back to the last time he had seen the noble.

_Ichigo laid on the quiet battlefield, the injuries he had sustained keeping him from moving. He wasn't sure if anyone was close to finding him, and his mind danced dully between awareness and oblivion._

_"He's gone..." he whispered, his body aching, and the scent of blood swirling in the air around him, "That bastard's gone and Soul Society is safe. I kept my promise..."_

_He thought back to the opening conflict in the war...running through the broken remains of the shattered Seireitei and finding Kuchiki Byakuya, beaten and near death._

_"Byakuya...I wonder if you're still alive," he whispered, blinking and trying to focus on the dark, misted sky over him, "If you are..."_

_"Of course I am alive," the noble's voice said quietly, making Ichigo flinch in surprise and stare as the Kuchiki clan leader leaned over him and began to address his wounds, "You didn't think that after nearly being killed by that quincy, I would simply let him slay me again, did you?"_

_Ichigo managed a pained chuckle, as Byakuya's soft hands opened his clothing so that the noble could better address his injuries._

_"No way," he chuckled, "I am just kinda out of it and wondered if you were really here or I was just dreaming."_

_"I am here," Byakuya assured him, "There is no one else alive in the area, however. And it will take some time for the Gotei 13 to assemble a group to come here to search for survivors."_

_"Are Rukia and Renji okay?"_

_"Yes. I have sensed them several times, and their reiatsu is fine."_

_"That's good," Ichigo sighed, letting the residual battle tension seep out of his damaged body, "Thanks. by the way. It was kind of creepy being out here, unable to move and all alone."_

_"I understand that," Byakuya replied quietly, intensifying his healing power, "having endured something similar after my first battle with the quincy, As Nodt."_

_"Right..." Ichigo breathed, remembering, "That's got to have been horrible."_

_"It came out all right," Byakuya went on, "I was fortunate that you came along when you did."_

_"Why?" Ichigo mused, his eyes attracted to the soft, green glow around Byakuya's pretty hands, "I didn't do anything, not for you, nor anyone else, that day."_

_"What did you think you were going to do?" Byakuya said, shaking his head, "At that point, we did not have the tools nor the knowledge to defeat Juha Bach."_

_"Yeah, that's true," Ichigo said, yawning, "And I didn't know what I needed to, then. I'm sorry. I wish that I could have done more for you."_

_"You did what was most important," Byakuya reminded him quietly, his dark eyes transfixing the younger man, "You drove them off and gave us time for preparation for the next assault. And you, yourself, were the hand that prevented that man from triumphing. I assure you, Kurosaki Ichigo, you more than kept your promise to me. And I am forever in your debt for that."_

_"Heh," Ichigo chuckled, smiling up at him, "Just keep me from bleeding out until the rescue forces arrive, okay? We'll call it even."_

_"I won't let you die," Byakuya promised, the words echoing those Ichigo, himself, had said while he tried desperately to reach the dying noble._

_Ichigo gazed up at him through hazy eyes, a flutter touching his insides at the sight of the noble's pretty, moonlit face._

_"I'm so glad you didn't die either," he whispered, reaching up a trembling hand and brushing his fingers against Byakuya's cheek._

_The noble froze, still gazing down at him, a questioning look in his dark, gray eyes. Ichigo's searching fingers gently slid down his cheek and traced his lips as the shinigami substitute looked into his eyes and wondered at the jolt it gave him inside._

_And being an impulsive youth, he didn't question when his emotions became riled by the contact and he felt a twinge of carnal hunger. He lifted himself slightly and honed in on those sweet, soft lips, capturing them in a sudden, heart-melting kiss._

_"Ichigo," Byakuya said breathlessly, as he was pulled down and subjected to a harder and more amorous, open-mouthed kiss, "You've lost control of your senses."_

_"No way," Ichigo chuckled dizzily, "I know what I'm doing. And you can't object on the grounds of me not being a noble and not belonging. I'm from a noble clan too."_

_"You are," Byakuya admitted, trying to pull away, but not wanting to hurt the injured man._

_He only managed to entangle himself more firmly in Ichigo's embrace._

_"But...you are saying that you...are interested in me, romantically?"_

_Ichigo gave him a pained smirk._

_"I just kissed you, didn't I?"_

_"You're delirious," the noble sighed, shaking his head, "You're thinking I'm someone else. You can't mean that you..."_

_"Yeah," Ichigo laughed, "I think you're beautiful...beautiful..."_

_"You need to rest," Byakuya said, tersely._

_"I'm kinda cold."_

_Byakuya looked around for a moment, then, not finding anything to lay over the younger man, he removed his haori and laid it on Ichigo's bloodied form. Ichigo stared in surprise, the gentle scents of sakura, fine cloth and man blending provocatively and making him feel even more dizzy._

_"Hey, you're going to freeze," he objected, "And I'm all bloody."_

_Byakuya smirked._

_"I am fine," he assured the younger man, "And the Gotei 13 laundry is very adept at removing bloodstains. Do not concern yourself. Just rest until the rescue team arrives."_

_"I can't rest while you're sitting there, freezing your petals off," Ichigo complained, "At least lie down and share the warmth with me, so you'll be more comfortable."_

_"I told you, I am..."_

_He went silent as he was yanked down and held against a surprisingly warm and inviting shoulder. Ichigo's affectionate brown eyes captured his, and he read the genuine concern there. And realizing that it could take the rescue team hours to reach them, he had to conclude that the younger man was probably correct in urging him to do such a thing to keep warm._

_"Very well," he said, shifting slightly to settle more comfortably against Ichigo, "I am grateful for the warmth."_

_"It's your haori."_

_"I know," huffed the flustered noble, blushing, "I just meant that..."_

_"I know. I was kidding."_

_Ichigo meant to just lie next to the lovely man and look up at the stars as they waited. But his mind kept returning to how close Byakuya had come to dying, and how awful it had made him feel to even think of it. And although Kurosaki Ichigo had never been in love before, he understood the quickening of his heart and the rush of giddiness that struck him as Byakuya settled closer to him and closed his eyes._

_"Are you going to be able to sleep some?" the noble asked softly._

_"I don't know," Ichigo answered honestly, "You healed the worst of it, but I'm still hurting like hell."_

_"Hmmm," Byakuya mused, sitting up again and looking through the pack he had been carrying, "I still have a few provisions...one of them a small bottle of sake. Renji's doing, I suppose."_

_"Heh, that could take the edge off so I can sleep," Ichigo agreed._

_He watched quietly as Byakuya poured a measure of the sake into a small cup, then handed it to him. Ichigo flinched as he swallowed it, then accepted another serving. His senses dulled slightly, and he made a sound of surprise at seeing Byakuya swallow a cup of the sake, himself._

_"You hurting too?" he laughed._

_"A bit," the noble admitted, putting the bottle away and settling down at Ichigo's side again, "Now, try to rest."_

_He did manage to doze off for a time, warmed by the sake, and the close press of Byakuya's warm body against his. When he woke again, Byakuya was still awake, leaning over him and healing a wound that had started to bleed again. He stared dazedly up at the beautiful man, his restraint giving way at the sight of that lovely, pale face and the comforting touch of his hands and healing power._

_"B-byakuya..." he moaned, capturing his face and bringing it down to meet his._

_The noble tensed for a moment as Ichigo's lips met his, and he looked as though he wanted to object, but, injured himself, and more than a little undone by his own injuries, lack of sleep, and even the small amount of sake he'd had, he relaxed into the kiss and let his body rest gently on top of Ichigo's. They kissed several times more, then Byakuya tried to pull away again._

_"H-hey," Ichigo objected, "Where are you going? Don't leave me, okay?"_

_"I'm not leaving you, but I..."_

_He inhaled in surprise as Ichigo turned suddenly and gained the upper position._

_"If you keep trying to get up, I guess I'll have to just hold you down," Ichigo chuckled, gently trapping him._

_"Ichigo, I..."_

_He was stopped with another knee-weakening kiss, then felt Ichigo's hands fumbling at their torn clothing._

_"W-wait!" he objected, "If you...!"_

_He was silenced again as the last barrier between them disappeared, and he felt Ichigo's hot, aroused member touch his bare thigh._

_"Ichigo...!"_

_"Shh," the shinigami substitute hissed softly, stifling his objections with a flurry of kisses._

_And before the exhausted, and somewhat inebriated noble knew what was happening, Ichigo positioned himself at Byakuya's entrance and slowly brought the two of them together._

_"Ichigo!" Byakuya gasped, reeling at the hard, gripping feeling of being taken, "Ichigo, you can't...or...I am going to...!"_

_His words disappeared as they began to move together, their hazy eyes locked, and their fingers laced together. Ichigo's hungry mouth latched on to Byakuya's, his tongue invading the noble's mouth and exploring the soft, sweet depths as their sudden coupling continued. Their steady movements grew faster and more heated, then roughened as they approached climax. Ichigo heard Byakuya give a small, surprised gasp, then felt his body tense sharply and shudder in release. The tightness around him sent him spinning into orgasm, and he loosed himself inside the noble's quaking body._

_They fell still, then, panting and clinging tightly to each other, falling into a warm barrage of finishing kisses, then drifting off towards sleep._

_"S-sorry," Ichigo managed sleepily, "I couldn't help it. I...I really like you, Byakuya. I..."_

_"I feel the same," Byakuya whispered, closing his eyes, "Now, please rest. Rescue should come soon."_

Ichigo sighed sadly, remembering waking some time later to the arrival of the rescue team, only to find that the noble was nowhere to be found.

_I never could understand what happened, _he mused, shaking his head, _He just disappeared without a trace. No one ever saw him again. And some of them didn't even believe he'd ever been with me. He was gone, and so were the haori and the things he'd been carrying. I don't know anymore. Maybe I did dream it all. I was badly hurt. But, I'd been healed, so..._

"This is it. This is the area," Renji said, interrupting Ichigo's thoughts.

The four flash stepped out of the garganta and down onto the dark sands of Hueco Mundo, their weapons held ready as they scanned the area carefully.

"We'll need to cover a lot of ground here, to be sure," Tetsuya said, looking around.

"I'll go this way with Tetsuya, and Ichigo, you and Rukia can go that way," Renji suggested.

Ichigo nodded.

"We'll check in back here in two hours," he told the others, "If we haven't found him by then...erm...found _anything_ by then, we can figure out what to do after."

Ichigo and Rukia watched for a moment as Renji and Tetsuya flash stepped away together, then started down their own path.

"How is Tetsuya doing, keeping all of your wacky elders under control?" Ichigo asked, trying not to think about why they were there, "I heard they pitched a fit when he told them he was seeing Renji."

"They weren't exactly pleased," Rukia chuckled, "But they came around. Tetsuya is the only one strong enough to lead them, and they know it. And with both Renji and him being so powerful and so much in love, I don't think they'll have to wait too long after the wedding for there to be heirs."

"Huh?" Ichigo mused, frowning, "Did you say...heirs?"

Rukia blinked in surprise.

"You mean they haven't told you that yet?" she queried, "I would have thought that, as the Shiba heir, you would know already that male nobles can impregnate one another.

"Eh...Dad and I don't really talk about sex, you know? He didn't tell me that."

_Oh my kami!_

_Does that mean...?_

_Was that what Byakuya was trying to tell me?_

"What's wrong with you?" Rukia asked, yanking him out of his reverie, "Come on. We need to look for Nii-sama. We need to find him."

"Right," Ichigo agreed, scratching the back of his neck and forcing his scattered emotions down.

They came to a small divide, one path leading upward, over a tall sand dune, and the other leading down into a rocky ravine.

"We'll have to separate here," Rukia said softly, "I'll go up that way and you look in the ravine."

Ichigo nodded and turned towards the ravine, his mind still trying to escape back into the past. He picked his way carefully through the rocks, then moved through a winding pass that opened up several minutes later into a barren-looking valley. He stepped out of the pass and froze as his eye fell on a collapsed form, lying in the sand, a few feet ahead of him.

On guard for traps, he scanned the area with his eyes, then moved forward cautiously, his hand on the hilt of his sword. But the area remained silent and still as he approached the person, then knelt at his side.

The sight of raven black hair pulled back into a long ponytail made his heart quicken, and he abandoned caution and gently turned the person over. His eyes widened as he studied the thin, pale face and torn and bloodied clothes. But even though the man seemed too thin, and his reiatsu too weak, he knew who he was looking at, and he pulled the man close, closing his eyes and fighting tears.

"Byakuya!" he managed softly, "Thank kami! But...where the hell have you _been_!"

The noble remained unconscious, even as Ichigo lifted him and raced back in the direction he had come from. Ichigo held onto him tightly, loathe to let them be separated again.

"It's going to be fine. You'll be okay," he promised, "I'm taking you home."


	2. Smiling Child (Emiko)

**Chapter 2: Smiling Child (Emiko)**

**(Thanks so much to everyone reading and reviewing! This one's off to a great start! Thanks to 'Guest' (Yeah, I enjoy Renji/Tetsuya because they're so playful together, and I'm really enjoying Bya with Ichigo too! That one took me by surprise, but I'm really channeling it now.), Castiel4life (I'm definitely keeping on top of this one. It's turning out very well, so far!), AngelaMaeAnauzio (Actually, Bya was trying to warn Ichigo that he could get pregnant. Renji is very happily with Tetsuya in this one. Sorry for the confusion.), Geecee (Oh heck yes! You will have a heaping helping of protective TopIchigo in this one. Bya's going to be a mess, and need lots of 'comforting!'), Shenigmatic (Awww, thanks so much! :) I'm having a great time with this one already.), Yomi Love Akisuma (You've got it! The chapters will keep rolling on!), Yaya (Yup, I will stay On Top of it!), TomyAllen (Yes, despite the early on sex, the relationship will be slowed by Byakuya's recovery. But, it will heat up to red hot eventually! Can't wait for that!), Yaoilifesnecessity (Yup, and more and more! :) Enjoy!), ctofi1 (I am so glad you love this one! :) Enjoy the new chapter!), Tderwes24 (Ah yes, there will explanations...eventually. But first, some very sweet hurt/comfort, Ichigo/Bya style!), MissLilly2012 (Bya's story will unravel slowly, but there will be lots of sparks between Ichigo and Bya very soon.), Yonaka Kyoki (Lovely, lovely poetry! Thanks so much! I hope you feel better soon!), and Clobojojo (lol, Just in time to save your sanity! Here's more, and more is coming along soon!), Enjoy all!)**

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_Why do I feel, not so much as though I am warm as that the icy cold has finally abated? I cannot remember what happened before. Only that I was cold, and in pain, and that another soul was with me, but did nothing to ease my suffering._

_Yes._

_He was the reason for my suffering._

_But somehow, I escaped that dark presence that had coiled itself so tightly around me. I ran with all of my strength...ran, even until I could not stand. And then, I fell down onto icy, black sand and I waited to die._

_But I am still alive._

_I can feel my heart beating. I feel warmth on my skin. I feel the soft rise and fall of my breathing._

_Yes, I am alive._

_And there are other souls around mine now. Not dark souls, but rich, bright and loving ones. They talk to my senseless body as though I was someone dear to them. They wrap me in warmth and whisper encouragement into my ears. I feel their fingers touch my hands and caress my face and hair, and I want to cry. Why do they do this? Who am I to them? And if this is where I belong, why did I leave them? _

_Or did that dark soul steal me away?_

_And if he did take me from them, won't he just come back for me?_

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"Michio-san," Rukia said softly, so as not to wake her sleeping brother, "What have you learned? Is Nii-sama going to be all right?"

The clan healer sighed and closed his eyes for a moment,, then looked back at the four who awaited his answer, the four who had steadfastly refused to leave Kuchiki Byakuya's side since he had reappeared.

"I cannot tell you exactly what has happened to him," he admitted quietly, "But, I can tell you that he has been under intense stress for an extended period of time. Judging from the signs I see, he must have been held in captivity for the time that he was missing. And while with his captors, he was treated with disregard and neglect."

"But," Renji said, a little breathlessly, "He's going to come out of it, and he'll be all right, ne?"

Michio met his gaze with troubled eyes.

"He is in very poor condition. Let me show you what I mean."

The four moved in close, watching closely as the healer gently opened Byakuya's yukata, and leaned over him.

"You see the general thinness of his body, and that he shows traces of past injuries," Michio said, pointing out the places as he referred to them, "They seem to have avoided striking his face, but you see the bruises and light markings on his arms and legs from past beatings. There are more on his chest and back as well. The marking that goes here, around his throat, is from a leather collar, most likely a reiatsu suppressing collar that held back his powers. You will notice that I placed a limiter on him. Although no reiatsu is flowing through his spirit centers, if his powers return suddenly, his spirit centers could be overwhelmed and damaged."

"Gomen nasai," Tetsuya said, frowning, "But, did you say that no reiatsu was flowing through his spirit centers? Even now that he is only under a limiter?"

"Hai," said the healer, "He has had some sort of physical episode that incapacitated them."

"What?" Ichigo gasped, staring, "Well, can you heal them?"

Michio sighed sadly.

"I cannot. And whether he regain his powers will depend on the type of episode or occurrence that incapacitated them."

"But, what could have caused that?" Ichigo asked, "Was this from the beatings?"

"No," said the healer, "Affecting all of the spirit centers would mean that either the core spirit center was breached and shut down intentionally, or something systemic, such as a heavy shock of some kind...an electrical or strong kido strike...or perhaps shock brought on by injury, or the miscarriage of a male pregnancy."

"What?" the four gasped together.

"Do you think that Nii-sama could have been...impregnated by his captors?" Rukia asked, her face paling.

"I will not show you, but I will tell you," the healer explained, "His body shows signs of repeated, violent sexual assaults. His wrists and ankles have friction markings from having been bound. There are signs of both defensive and entry wounds And I detected the presence of a fading reiatsu chamber within him, meaning that he was pregnant until recently, and that the child was lost."

"Oh my kami..." breathed Tetsuya, seeking Renji's hand, "You say that he was...?"

"Yes. I do not know how the child was lost...whether he miscarried naturally, or if it was the result of accident, illness or assault. It could have been any of those things."

"Okay," Renji said, bracing himself, "We can see that he's a mess. But...he will get better, right?"

"He will improve with rest and care," Michio assured them, "And I fully expect that, at some point, he will wake. But...I will have to assess him completely, once he is conscious and fully aware to formulate a full prognosis. It is, unfortunately, a time when we must wait and care for him as best we can. I have healed his physical injuries, and have started periodic reiatsu and feeding infusions to stabilize his systems. Once everything is in balance, he should wake."

"Well, that's good, anyway," said Ichigo.

"But," Tetsuya said, meeting Rukia, Renji and Ichigo's eyes solemnly, "It is not just his injuries that we must worry about. When I assessed the area in which he was found by Ichigo-san, the signs pointed very strongly to an escape. And if he escaped his captors, then they may come to reclaim him."

"What? You think they'd dare to come _here_?" Renji asked, looking surprised, "What makes you think that?"

Tetsuya lowered his eyes to gaze quietly at Byakuya as he went on.

"You all know that I was once incarcerated in the noble's prison, Itamigiri. It was shut down after Byakuya-sama's raid, but rumors have reached us on occasion, of other such illegal prisons. It could be something of that nature, or it could be something else entirely. Ichigo-san, tell me, once again, exactly what happened when you last saw Byakuya-sama."

"Well," Ichigo said, his mind fixing suddenly on their impromptu coupling on the deserted battlefield, "I, uh...I was lying on the ground where the rescue team eventually found me, and my wounds were bleeding badly. I was fading in and out, and I wondered out loud if Byakuya was still alive. That's when he spoke up. He asked me if I thought that he would lose a second time to that quincy, As Nodt. We talked a little, and he stopped the bleeding and healed me some. At some point, I faded out. And when I woke up again, Byakuya was gone. And everything, the haori that he'd covered us with, the pack he'd been carrying, everything was gone too."

"Are you sure?" asked Tetsuya, "I took my team out to the area, and our conclusion differed from that of the second division investigation team."

"Oh?"

"We found one item that carried a trace of his reiatsu. A sake bottle. Do you remember him having such an item in his possession at the time you were together?" Tetsuya asked.

Ichigo bit his lips gently, remembering.

_Hmmm," Byakuya mused, sitting up again and looking through the pack he had been carrying, "I still have a few provisions...one of them a small bottle of sake. Renji's doing, I suppose."_

_"Heh, that could take the edge off so I can sleep," Ichigo agreed._

_He watched quietly as Byakuya poured a measure of the sake into a small cup, then handed it to him. Ichigo flinched as he swallowed it, then accepted another serving. His senses dulled slightly, and he made a sound of surprise at seeing Byakuya swallow a cup of the sake, himself._

_"You hurting too?" he laughed._

_"A bit," the noble admitted, putting the bottle away and settling down at Ichigo's side again, "Now, try to rest."_

"Yeah," Ichigo said, nodding, "He took a sake bottle out of the pack he was carrying. He gave it to me to dull my senses, so that I would be able to rest without hurting so much. I was hurting like hell."

"Then, that pretty much proves he was really there, right?" concluded Renji.

"It does," agreed Tetsuya, "And it told me something more. The sake bottle looked as though it had been dropped or kicked, perhaps accidentally, and had rolled away from where you were. It rolled under the edge of a jutting rock, and was missed by the second division team."

"Did you tell Kyouraku soutaichou?" asked Renji.

"I did," confirmed Tetsuya, "I told him also that the area had the feel of having been carefully 'cleaned' of what traces I would have expected to see when Ichigo-san was found."

"And what did he have to say about that?" asked Ichigo, "Sometimes the Gotei can be..."

"Kyouraku soutaichou said that he wished that he could follow up on it, but with the sporadic attacks going on at the time, he hadn't the manpower. And he was right in his thinking. The quincy war was devastating in the number of casualties. They really had their hands full, as Rukia-chan and Renji would likely agree."

"Right," Rukia and Renji affirmed.

"After the war, we did return to the site several times, and conducted searches meant to pick out a trail or direction Byakuya-sama's captors might have taken, who they might have been, or where they might have gone. All came back empty-handed. All we ever found that indicated he had been there, was that sake bottle."

"And you think that if his captors went to such an effort to hide that fact that they took him, they wouldn't be so quick to just let him go," posited Rukia, "They would come after him."

"It depends on _why, for what purpose_ he was taken," explained Tetsuya, "It could have been a group of the scattered quincies, hoping to use him as a bargaining chip, to secure their safety, or to win concessions from Soul Society. It could have been a rogue group, but they wouldn't necessarily have been so careful in removing their traces. The quincies, at least, had reason for that."

"That makes sense," agreed Ichigo.

"Another possibility is that it was someone unrelated to the war, who took advantage of the situation and abducted him. Whoever it was, they kept him alive for an extended time. Now, he was beaten and sexually assaulted, but he was not killed. The only evidence we have beyond that of the beatings and assaults he suffered, are the signs of recent pregnancy. It is not clear if those were the unintentional result of the assaults, or if they were the point of the assaults."

"Huh? You mean, someone _meant_ to get him pregnant?" Ichigo asked, looking alarmed.

"It is possible," Tetsuya said quietly.

"But, why would they do that?" Renji asked, frowning and looking back at Byakuya, "Why would someone take him and knock him up? Granted, they'd be cute and probably damned powerful babies, but..."

"They would be possible heirs to his leadership in the clan," concluded Tetsuya, "And that leads me to conclude that if he was taken with the intent of making a noble heir, then he would have been taken by either a rival clan, or a powerful enemy of the soul king."

"Did you investigate which clan might have been involved in something like that?" Rukia asked.

"I did," Tetsuya answered, nodding, "I could find no clear evidence of a clan planning or carrying out such a thing. But that does not mean that one of them didn't. It just means that, if they did, they did a good job of covering it up."

"So, if it's not a clan that did it," Ichigo mused, "Then, who would be considered 'an enemy of the soul king,' who would be powerful enough, not just to overpower Byakuya, but to hide him and keep him under those awful conditions for five years? Aizen is still in Central 46, and Juha Bach is gone for another thousand years, at least. "Do you think it could be someone who worked with one of them?"

"Possibly," Tetsuya agreed, "Or...it could possibly have been a spirit demon who crossed over into Hueco Mundo. That happens, from time to time."

"Man, it seems like there are so many damned questions to answer," Renji sighed, shaking his head, "And the guy with the answers is still out cold. We really need him to wake up."

"And we need to keep him safe until he does. I think that we should work in teams to look after him, never leaving him without at least one of us being here," suggested Tetsuya.

"He needs constant monitoring anyway," Michio added, "And I need to be informed immediately when he wakes, so that I can assess him fully and decide how best to assist him."

"We will work in groups of two, with one of the two resting in the attendant's recess, while the other is at Byakuya-sama's side. Renji and I will be one team, attendants Torio-san and Koji-san will be another, and Ichigo-san and Rukia-chan could be a third. That way, he will always have protectors, and all of us can stay rested as we watch over him."

"That sounds good to me," Ichigo said, nodding.

The others all added their agreements.

"Then, it is decided."

"Rukia and I are probably the best rested," said Ichigo, "So, why don't we take the first watch."

The others quickly agreed, and the watch was set.

"Now, let the house guards know immediately if you see, hear, or otherwise sense anything being 'off' tonight," Tetsuya warned them, "And watch out for each other."

"We will," Rukia and Ichigo promised.

The two watched as the others left, then Ichigo nodded in the direction of the attendant's recess.

"I'll take the first," he offered, "You go and get some rest over there."

"Are you sure?" Rukia asked, "Because I'm really not that tired..."

"Go on," Ichigo said, nudging her in the direction of the bed, "I've got this."

"Thanks, Ichigo," Rukia said, yawning and moving to stretch out in the servant's area bed.

Ichigo sat down at Byakuya's side, slipping a hand into the clan leader's and caressing his fingers gently as he studied Byakuya's troubled sleeping face, and the sad reminders of what he had endured.

"I'm sorry you suffered like that," he said, very softly, "You didn't deserve to be held against your will, or to be hurt that way. I wish that we could have found you sooner. You must have wondered if we had forgotten you. But...you should know that we didn't. We looked and looked for you. We tried...so hard to find you. But, we just couldn't. I'm sorry, Byakuya...really sorry."

Ichigo went quiet as Byakuya winced, then moaned softly.

"Hey," he whispered, squeezing the noble's hand gently, "I'm here with you. You're not alone, and you're not with those bastards who took you anymore. You're safe now, and you're going to be fine. Rest now, okay?"

"E-e...Emi...ko..." Byakuya moaned incoherently.

"What's that?"

Byakuya took a panting breath and shivered.

"Wh-where is...E...Emi...ko?"

"Where's who?" Ichigo asked, frowning and leaning over Byakuya, then touching his face.

Byakuya's eyelids fluttered fitfully, then his dark eyes opened and tried to fix on Ichigo's face.

"Emiko?" he whispered dazedly, lifting a trembling hand.

"No, it's me. It's Ichigo."

"Emiko?" Byakuya whispered, his voice fading into senselessness again, "Where are you, Emiko?"

"Ichigo?" said Rukia, sliding out of the bed and joining him at Byakuya's side, "Was he...talking?"

"Yeah," Ichigo confirmed, "A little. But, I don't know what he was talking about. He was looking at me, but he was calling for someone named Emiko."

"Emiko?" Rukia repeated, frowning, "I don't think he knows an Emiko."

"It may be someone that he knew wherever he was kept, or something."

"Maybe," Rukia said thoughtfully, "We should tell the healer in the morning."

"Are you sure it should wait?" Ichigo asked, "He was talking."

"It was in his sleep, right?" said Rukia, "And he's gone unconscious again. Look."

"Right," Ichigo said in a disappointed tone.

"Ichigo, it will be okay," Rukia assured him, "Nii-sama will wake up. And he'll be all right. I know he will."

"Right," Ichigo agreed, gazing intently down at the clan leader's face as a single tear broke free and rolled down Byakuya's cheek.

He waited as Rukia moved back to the attendant's recess, then leaned forward and wiped it away.

"It's okay," he whispered, "We're going to take good care of you. And we'll find the bastards who did this to you and make them pay, Byakuya. You have my word."

_Emiko, he said._

_Who is that?_


	3. Awakening

**Chapter 3: Awakening**

"Hey, Pesche, she moved," Dondachakka said, leaning over the small child who laid in the sand, "She's still alive."

"Huh? Really?" Pesche mused, moving closer and gazing down at the girl, "I thought she was dead, for sure!"

"Should we tell Nel-sama?"

Pesche swatted his more portly friend on the head and let out an annoyed breath.

"Duh, of course we should tell her...if we can find her, that is. Remember, we were in the middle of a game of hide and seek."

"Oh! Oh yeah, I was so surprised we found this shinigami girl that I forgot all about our game. NEL-SAMA! NEL-SAMA, COME OUT!"

"Hey, baka!" Peshe objected, not noticing that the girl's pretty gray eyes had opened and were staring up at them and widening in surprise, "Shut up! Do you know how stupid you're being?"

"What? I'm going to tell Nel-sama we found this..."

"That's not what I mean! Dondachakka, I know it's not something you usually do, but try to think, for a minute, okay?"

"Huh?"

"That girl...was running away from something when she collapsed here. It didn't find her, BUT IT COULD STILL BE LOOKING AROUND HERE FOR HER!"

Dondachakka glanced at the girl, noticing her bemused look and not registering the fact that she was awake just yet.

"You know, Pesche, if you don't want that thing to come after us, then maybe you shouldn't be yelling like that."

Pesche's bone mask went red with fury.

"You stupid ass! That's what I was trying to tell YOU! Get a clue, will you? You..."

"Ah, Pesche..."

"...amaze me with your cluelessness!"

"Pesche?"

"Just give me the kid and..."

Dondachakka's eyes rounded as he sensed the approach of a powerful being. Sensing that time had run out, he grabbed the little girl and dove behind a rock as the dark, wicked presence honed in on his still muttering friend.

"I'm always having to save your ass. If you'd learn to use that wooden head of yours for something other than kindling..."

"Excuse me," said a soft, male voice.

"YIIIII!" howled Pesche, leaping into the air, then crashing down into a heap on the sand, "G-gah! Aizen-sama, you scared the shit outta me!"

"Hmmm, Pesche, is it?"

"Y-yeah?" the hollow managed, his teeth chattering inside his bone mask, "What do you want, Aizen-sama? You really shouldn't sneak around like that. You scared me to death!"

"My apologies," Aizen said silkenly, "Now, I was looking for Neliel."

Pesche swallowed hard and struggled to think of something to say, but no words would come. He winced as Aizen's powerful reiatsu assailed him.

"Do you know where she is? You are one of her fraccion, no?"

"Y-yeah, but...she ah...she went off with Grimmjow. S-said something about some trouble near the old fortress or something," Pesche panted breathlessly, "S-sorry."

"It's no trouble," Aizen said, freezing the hollow with his gaze, "When she returns, I want you to tell her something for me."

Pesche stared at the tall shinigami, still unable to speak.

"I am searching for two people. One is a black-haired man who will be poorly dressed and looking injured. The other is a small child, a young girl. If you see them, you are to delay them here and send for me at once."

"Uh-huh...okay," Pesche answered dizzily, swaying as Aizen's intense reiatsu seemed to squeeze the breath from his lungs.

"Thank you," Aizen said, disappearing in a flash step and leaving Pesche to collapse again in the sand.

There was a long moment of silence, then Dondachakka peeked out from behind the rock where he had taken cover. Carrying the staring child in his arms, he walked to his friend and dropped onto his knees, looking down into Pesche's hazy eyes.

"Y-yeah, no...uh...no problem..." Pesche mumbled incoherently, "We'll just...do that..."

"Hey...hey, Pesche, you okay?"

The hollow's eyes blinked slowly, several times, then found Dondachakka's huge mask and strayed to the ginger-haired, gray-eyed girl who was looking back at him.

"I think he fainted," said the girl, startling the two hollows.

"AUGH!" squealed Pesche, "She's awake! Drop her, Dondachakka, quick!"

"Yii!" shouted Dondachakka, letting go of the girl, who clung to his shoulder and giggled, "Ah! Let go! Let go! Let go!"

Dondachakka danced around wildly, trying desperately to dislodge the clinging shinigami girl, but only succeeding in making her hang on more tightly and giggle more furiously. Pesche stopped and watched for a moment, the gears in his mind coming to a screeching halt as he realized.

"H-hey, hey Dondachakka...Hey!"

"What?" the other hollow asked, stopping his motions and looking back at his friend questioningly, completely forgetting the little girl who still clung to his shoulder.

If Pesche's face wasn't already white, it would have gone white as he stared in the direction Aizen had gone, swallowing hard and clenching his bony hands.

"Hey, ah, Aizen-sama was here before."

"Yeah," Dondachakka agreed, "That's why I was hiding! I was surprised he didn't kill you right there."

"Uh, yeah, I'm kinda surprised at that too. Buddy, he said that he was looking for a poor guy with black hair and a little girl."

"A little girl?" the portly hollow mused, scratching his head and thinking hard, "So?"

A soft giggle issued near his ear, and Dondachakka's eyes rotated to meet the girl's. The girl smiled at him and giggled sweetly.

"Yikes!" he squealed, slipping free of her grasp and running away with Pesche on his heels.

The girl stared after them, her gray eyes clouding up and filling with tears. She looked around in the darkness, finding herself alone again, and wondering where the tall, sad man who had helped her escape was.

"B-bya-san?" she sobbed, sitting down in the sand and rubbing her eyes, "Bya-san!"

Pesche and Dondachakka peeked out from behind a rock, where they had taken cover, watching as the little girl dissolved into tears. In moments, the two hollows were fighting tears and hugging each other.

"That's so sad!" Dondachakka sobbed, "Pesche, we can't just leave her there!"

"B-but, Aizen-sama was looking for her!" Pesche reminded him, "That's got to be the girl that he was talking about. Do you _know_ how badly he'll torture and kill us if he finds us with her, and we didn't tell him?"

He realized then, that Dondachakka had left their hiding place and was inching his way on hands and knees to where the girl sat, crying. He stopped in front of her, watching as she realized she wasn't alone and hiccoughed a few times, then stopped crying and rubbed her eyes.

"Do you know that Aizen-sama is looking for you?" he asked her.

The girl's face paled, and she nodded.

"Bya-san said that we couldn't let Daddy Aizen find us, or he would hurt us," she said, sniffing and rubbing her eyes, "There were hollows chasing us, and something hit Bya-san, and he fell down and told me to run into the doorway. But it closed, and the hollows scared me. So, I just ran and ran until I fell down and had to sleep. I don't know what happened to Bya-san. I couldn't find him again."

Pesche stopped as he reached Dondachakka's side.

"We didn't see anyone else," he told the girl, "We just found you dead...erm...passed out on the sand, there."

"C-can you help me find Bya-san?" the girl asked.

The two hollows exchanged glances, then looked back at the girl.

"Hmmm, I don't know where your friend is, but..."

"Bya-san isn't my friend. He is my servant. Daddy Aizen assigned him to take care of me for him. He's nice and he tells me lots of stories. He teaches me things and we play games together. But Bya-san is more important than a friend. I need to find him!"

"Awww," Dondachakka said, sniffing, "Of course we'll help you. We have a friend who's really powerful. She might be able to help you find your Bya-san!"

"Ack! What are you saying?" Pesche objected, looking scared, "Dondachakka, what about her _daddy_? You know, the scary, _murderous,_ backstabbing Aizen-sama? What about when he comes back and kills us all?"

"Well," said the big hollow, "I think we are already in the fire, so it won't be too bad in the frying pan, ne?"

"Eesh!" grumbled Pesche, slipping a hand into the girl's and helping her to her feet, "Would you _please _stop trying to think too hard? You always get us into mountains of trouble!"

"Who's in trouble? Nel-sama will know what to do!"

"But, who is Nel-sama?" asked the girl, "Is she nice?"

"She's very nice, kid," Pesche assured her, "And she's smart, too. She'll think of something to help you out, okay?"

"Okay," the girl said, pressing up against Pesche's side and looking around cautiously.

"Heh...cute," Pesche chuckled, "Yeah..._to die for. _So, kid, do you have a name?"

"I'm Aizen Emiko," the girl told him, earning a scared look in return, "My father is Aizen Sousuke and I don't have a mother because she died."

"Awww, I'm sorry," Dondachakka said sadly, "But it's even more sad that you have to run away from your own father."

"We understand, though," Pesche sighed, "Who'd _want_ to be that guy's kid?"

"I wish Bya-san was my daddy," Emiko sighed, pressing even closer to Pesche, "Daddy Aizen scares me. I don't know why. He doesn't yell at me or anything. But he hurts Bya-san. And while he was hurting Bya-san, I heard him say that he would hurt me too. I don't know why he said that. Why would my daddy hurt me?"

"Eh," Pesche muttered, patting her on the head, "Who knows why that guy does the things he does? He'd give his own mother to the demons to eat if it would help to make him king."

"But how would hurting Bya-san and me help him become king?"

"I don't know, Emiko-chan," Pesche said, shaking his head and tightening his hand on hers, "But we'll make sure that you don't have to worry about that. Come on."

XXXXXXXXXX

Byakuya struggled desperately to make his body move, but found himself unable to do anything but summon tears of frustration. They leaked onto his face, and he felt gentle fingertips brush them away.

"Hey, what's that all about?" said a warm, friendly and very familiar sounding voice, "It's okay. You're safe now. We're not going to let anything happen to you."

He wasn't sure where he had heard that voice before, only that it seemed to have been before becoming Aizen's possession. He strained hard to remember the others that he sensed, but was left with only vague impressions. The one holding his hand, however, seemed to have special significance.

_He looks like her._

But the girl's face was becoming hazy in his mind. The image of her flickered teasingly, and he felt twinges of panic as he struggled to hang on to that dimming impression.

_The attack that struck me._

_It must be affecting my memory._

_Emiko..._

_I must remember..._

He struggled harder, feeling shivers invade his body as something came back that he wished he hadn't remembered.

_"Aizen-sama, I am sorry," the healer said sadly, "I did try, but I am afraid that Bya-san was not able to carry your child to term this time either."_

_He flinched at the way that Aizen glared down at the semi-conscious noble's restrained body._

_"I am sure that you did your best," Aizen said quietly, his reiatsu flickering dangerously, "You cannot help it if Bya refuses to give his best effort."_

_"But, he did, sir!" the healer exclaimed, shaking his head, "He came to every appointment as scheduled. He did everything I told him to, except that he could not follow the dietary advice when you were angry and had his meals restricted. I assure you, if there was anything that he could..."_

_"You misunderstand," Aizen said, his glare intensifying, "The hougyoku's power is such that if Byakuya truly desired this child, the power of the hougyoku would have helped him carry it to term."_

_"But, you said, yourself, that the hougyoku's power only works on desires that one has the innate ability to attain."_

_"Byakuya can get pregnant. He had Kurosaki Ichigo's bastard, Emiko. He can have my child. It is as simple as that."_

_"But sir, male noble pregnancy is not so straightforward. What I mean is that, if perchance, Kurosaki-san was his soul mate, then it would no longer be possible for him to have another man's child. I assure you, it must be something like this. Bya-san has been very committed to his baby's health. If he failed, it was certainly not his fault, sir."_

_Perhaps not," Aizen said, non-committally, "but whether it is that he is not committed to this, or because of his bond with Kurosaki, the path I must take is the same."_

_"N-n-no!" Bya gasped, struggling against the bonds at his wrists and ankles, "Not...not Emiko! P-please, Aizen-sama! Don't...not Emiko!"_

_Aizen moved closer, looking down into the noble's desperate, glazed over eyes and shaking his head reprovingly._

_"Disgraceful," he said, frowning, "I remember when you would rather have taken a sword through your heart than to plead like a useless slave. But then...you don't remember being that person, do you?"_

_He sighed softly and looked away._

_"You used to be strong. And if you had not forced me to break you, you would be strong still, Byakuya. It is a good thing everyone thinks that you are dead. You wouldn't want them to see you like this. Who could look at what you are now and not cringe? But, be comforted. I will make sure that you forget your daughter, so that you will not suffer too badly. I could kill you, but, somehow, despite the pathetic thing that you have become, I still desire you. Perhaps it is the satisfaction of having taken the greatest of the king's noble leaders and having made him into a weak, pathetic excuse for a man. Of maybe it is that pretty, soft skin and the scent of sakura that still bewitches me."_

_He frowned more deeply and shook his head again, then looked at the healer._

_"Wipe his mind clean and then return him to his room. I am going to find the girl. It is time to get this over with."_

_"Yes...Aizen-sama," the healer said, bowing, then watching Aizen leave the room._

_He bent over Bya, sighing sadly and biting his lip gently as he spotted Emiko hiding behind one of the chairs in the room. Clearing his throat softly, he touched Bya's face lightly, and loosened the hold of the kido spell over his consciousness._

_"I must go for a few minutes," he whispered, looking down into the hazy gray eyes meaningfully and releasing the restraints, "When I return, I must follow Aizen's orders to wipe your mind of memory."_

_He turned and left the room, shutting the door behind him._

_As soon as he was gone, Emiko scooted out from behind the chair and moved quickly to Bya's side._

_"Bya-san!" she called urgently, "Bya-san, wake up! Daddy Aizen is going to...he's going to hurt us! Come, Bya-san! You must get up! Get up, Bya-san!"_

_Bya stirred and blinked several times, then accepted the girl's hand as she helped him to his feet._

_"Bya-san, do you know the way out?" she asked, her voice shaking, "Hurry!"_

_Bya's grip tightened on her hand, and the girl smiled up at him._

_"That's better," she said approvingly, "Now, how do we get out, Bya-san?"_

_He couldn't manage to speak yet, but he led her to the door, where the two peered out and waited for an opening. When the way looked clear, the two abandoned the examination room and slipped into a servant's passage to remain hidden. Emiko held on to Bya's hand tightly and looked around nervously as they hurried along the dark, quiet corridor, listening for sounds of pursuit. They had just reached the fortress gates, when an alarm began to ring and they felt the swell of power that preceded the locking down of the area._

_"Quickly, Emiko-sama!" Bya managed, "Your kido!"_

_The little girl's eyes widened, but she raised her hands obediently and took aim on the exterior wall._

_"Hado number thirty-three, Soukatsui!"_

_They ran forward as the kido struck the wall, opening the way to the dark desert outside._

_"Run, Emiko-sama!" Bya cried, abandoning any attempt to be quiet as the guards spotted them and started firing ceros, "Use your flash step and head towards that glimmer of light. It is the old fortress, Las Noches. There are a couple of the former Espadas there, who work against Aizen. They will help us escape to the living world. Go!"_

_Emiko invoked her flash step as Bya ran as fast as he could behind her, altering his path to dodge the intermittent ceros. They neared a rise, and Emiko reached the top and dashed over. But, as Bya followed, he felt Aizen's eyes touch on him._

_"No!" he hissed, "Not when we are so..."_

_He didn't have to look to feel the incoming blast that took him off his feet and sent him crashing to the ground. His body screamed in protest as he rolled over and came to a stop on the cold sand, but he forced himself to his feet and threw himself over the rise, tumbling down and sliding to a graceless halt at the bottom of the hill. He quickly spotted the open garganta that the officers used to move about and yelled for Emiko to run for it._

_"We won't make it to the fortress! Get through the door before it closes! Go now, Emiko-sama!"_

_He scrambled forward, knowing full well that the doorway would close before he could reach it._

_"Emiko-sama, run!"_

_His heart froze as the girl looked back and seemed to realize. She turned back and ran towards him._

_"No!" he cried desperately, "Emiko-sama, you have to escape. Leave me!"_

_"I'm not leaving you, Bya-san! You belong to me. You are my servant! Get up!"_

_Tears coming to his eyes, he rose and reached for her hand as the doorway closed._

_"Run, Emiko-sama!" he panted, We can't let them find us now. Use the rocks as cover and...and call your zanpakutou, like I taught you. You can open a senkaimon. It is our only hope now."_

_Emiko held out a small hand and focused deeply, shutting out the sounds of kido and cero, the coldness of the desert and the harshness of their breathing. She reached out for her zanpakutou spirit and connected with her._

_"I can feel their reiatsu," said Aizen's voice, somewhere in the distance._

_Emiko's heart raced wildly as she focused her mind on her zanpakutou spirit and invoked her will furiously._

_"I will help you," a soft, feminine voice said in her mind._

_And suddenly, the two escapees felt the wrapping around of immense power. They were lifted away and shot through the darkness at blinding speed that made them close their eyes and cling to each other. As they were pulled away, a huge blast of power struck at them, and Emiko felt Bya's hand tear away from hers._

_"BYA-SAN!" she screamed._

_To her relief, she saw him crash down into the sand, well away from their pursuers. But she was flung much farther, and soon lost sight of his collapsed form._

_Bya laid on the sand, panting hard and unable to move anymore. He tried to crawl forward, but lost consciousness quickly, and laid in a silent, vulnerable heap on the black sand._

_...At least she got away..._

"Emiko," Byakuya whispered, feeling tears in his eyes as her voice began to dim and her visage faded, "Don't go...Emiko."

"Nii-sama?" said a young woman's voice.

_Who...is that?_

"I've called for the healer. Open your eyes, Nii-sama. I can feel that you are awake."

"He's awake?" said the familiar male voice he had heard before.

"Yes. But he doesn't seem to be lucid, Ichigo."

_Ichigo?_

He heard Aizen's voice in his mind again.

_He had Kurosaki Ichigo's bastard, Emiko_

"Ichigo?" he whispered dazedly.

His mind spun away again, even as that warm hand captured his and Ichigo's voice reached him.

"Byakuya, I'm here."

"Emiko...is...she is..."

He tried desperately to remain awake, but felt the darkness close in again.

"Emiko, she is...lost."

Even though he couldn't move or speak anymore, his heart flooded with emotion as Ichigo's voice broke through the darkness.

"We will find her, Byakuya. If she means that much to you, we will find your friend, Emiko."

It felt as though he had been stopped short of falling completely into darkness...as though, teetering on the edge of the abyss, a hand had captured his and pulled him back to safety. Anchored by the emotion in those words, and by the one who spoke them, Byakuya took a breath and opened his eyes again.

"Byakuya?" Ichigo whispered, his brown eyes widening as the noble's opened and struggled to focus.

The Shiba heir felt a sudden swell of the reiatsu in his body, and white light rose around him, illuminating him from within then coursing through the hand that held Byakuya's. The Kuchiki heir's body recoiled in shock as that pure essence flowed into his body, flooding his sleeping spirit centers and making them glow a bright pink.

The newly lit embers flared painfully, and Byakuya wondered suddenly if he was being consumed. The manor shook with the power of the exchange, and swift flash steps sounded everywhere around the two as the household awakened and the security forces rushed to find the cause of the disturbance. Behind Ichigo, Rukia came to her feet, staring.

"N-nii-sama?" she stammered, "Ichigo? Ichigo, what's happening?"

"I don't know!" the Shiba heir gasped, trying to let go of Byakuya's hand, but finding that he couldn't.

He met the eyes of the old healer as the man ran into the room, his own desperate as the power blazing around them flared brightly again.

"What is this? What's happening, old man?" Ichigo demanded.

Michio stared, wide-eyed at Byakuya and Ichigo, understanding flooding him and bringing a returning calm.

"It is all right," he assured them, watching closely as Byakuya and Ichigo's bodies glowed brightly, then slowly, the power that had risen between them began to calm and fade.

Ichigo panted softly, his eyes locking on to Byakuya's and his body burning inside with the released power.

"But, what was that?"

Michio managed a soft, relieved smile and nodded.

"Your spirit centers have awakened his," he explained, "You are both very powerful shinigamis, so the awakening was forceful. But, it means that now Byakuya-sama will begin to truly heal."

"But, why did that happen between him and me?" Ichigo wondered aloud, looking into the widened eyes of the awakened Byakuya, "I don't understand."

"The signs are clear," Michio said softly, waving to the house security forces to disperse them, "You and Byakuya-sama...are mated souls. Your souls have been bonded to each other. That is why he needed your power to reawaken his."

"Bonded souls?" Ichigo repeated, still staring into Byakuya's eyes, "Byakuya and me?"

"Yes," the old healer affirmed, "There is no question what we all just witnessed. Our clan is grateful. Thanks to this bond, our leader begins to return to us."

"I don't understand," Byakuya whispered, the sound of his voice startling the ones who had gathered, "I cannot be your leader. I am just a slave...a servant."

"What?" Ichigo said, frowning, "Byakuya, what are you talking about? A slave? What do you mean? Byakuya, where have you been all of this time? Who took you away? Where were you taken?"

Byakuya's lips parted, and he tried to answer, but found only a strange blankness where the past had been. He caught a flash image of a little girl, the tinkling sound of her laugh, but her name escaped him.

"I...I was..."

He frowned and squinted, pain rocketing through his shocked mind as it registered that everything had disappeared.

"I don't know," he admitted in a stunned voice, "I cannot remember."


	4. Light the Darkness

**Chapter 4: Light the Darkness**

**(Apologies for not being able to thank people with shout-outs, but I'm still out of state, helping take care of my brother's four kids while he recovers from surgery, and the Internet is really touchy. I have to reload pages constantly and can't get my e-mail and PM's to work right, so have little access to PM's and e-mails. But, we should be going home tomorrow or the next day, thank goodness. This is really annoying for someone used to easy, high speed Internet! Anyway, thanks so very much to everyone reading and reviewing. This story is really doing well! And I will have another update for you very soon.), **

"Here, Byakuya-sama," Torio said encouragingly, setting a bowl of hot soup, fresh bread and steaming tea in front of the troubled clan leader.

"Arigatou," Byakuya said, bowing his head submissively, "I am grateful."

"Oh, it is nothing, Cousin," Torio said, shaking his head, "I am glad to serve Byakuya-sama! It is such a relief that you have returned to us."

"But, I do not even remember anyone. I do not remember you. Does that not bother you? Are you even sure that I am truly your leader?"

"What kinda talk is that?" Ichigo asked, entering the room through the open garden doors, "Do you think that _I_ wouldn't know you?"

An uncomfortable blush colored Byakuya's face and throat.

"I...I don't..."

Ichigo sat down beside the bed and smiled at him disarmingly. Byakuya felt an odd sensation of familiarity.

"I know you don't remember me," Ichigo said bracingly, "That's okay, if you feel a little awkward about the bond between us."

"The bond between us..." Byakuya mused softly, freezing for a moment as a dark voice rose up in his mind.

_"He had Kurosaki Ichigo's bastard, Emiko"_

"Kurosaki Ichigo," Byakuya said softly, biting at his lips gently and waiting until Torio had gone to go on, "We were...lovers, then?"

Ichigo gave him a look of feigned disapproval and crossed his arms.

"Huh, doesn't even remember our hundreds of hot, breathless nights together...I don't know..."

He shook his head and laughed softly at the noble's deepened flush and the way his eyes flicked away nervously.

"I..."

"I was kidding," Ichigo chuckled, taking his hand again, "The truth is, you and I started out as enemies."

"Did we?" Byakuya asked, looking curious, "Then, how...?"

"We got to know and respect each other over time. And I don't know why, but...you started to really trust me. You trusted me and respected me so much that even when someone once invaded your mind and tried to play with your memories, your respect for me overcame his mental games. You trusted me so much that when you thought you were going to die, you entrusted to me, the most sacred task you consider your own...the protection of Soul Society. And after I defeated the guy who tried to destroy Soul Society, you were healing me, and we started to realize that what's between us goes way deeper than the respect we have for each other. That was the one time that we made love. And that seems to be when the soul bonding happened, as far as we can tell."

"Ah," Byakuya said, still avoiding meeting the younger man's eyes directly.

_Was this when we made Emiko?_

_He frowned and shook his head._

_I called her Emiko-sama. I was a servant. I know that much, but..._

"You all right?" Ichigo asked as Torio returned to fluff up Byakuya's pillows and adjust his blankets, "You went kinda pale again."

"I am still trying to get my bearings," Byakuya said, looking down at his hands.

_But...how could I be Emiko's parent, yet be her slave too? Something is wrong with this. And I remember something else...a man with dark, wicked brown eyes..._

"Hey, uh, you sure you don't want your healer to come back?" Ichigo asked.

"You do look very pale, Byakuya-sama," Torio agreed.

"It does feel as though the room is spinning somewhat," the clan leader confessed.

"I will find Michio-san," Torio said, swiftly exiting the room and leaving him alone with Ichigo again.

"Ah, Byakuya, I want to ask you something."

"Hmmm?" Byakuya queried distractedly.

"You...didn't just remember something bad, did you?" the younger man asked, "The reason I'm asking is because you seemed to go inside your head for a minute. And it was then that you went all pale. So..."

Byakuya sighed softly.

_This man...he seems to anticipate me so well. We do seem very connected._

"It may be a memory," Byakuya said, meeting Ichigo's warm, affectionate eyes, and feeling a gentle twinge inside, "I remember a man...with narrowed brown eyes. He was angry about something, and it seemed he was angry with me."

He bit at his lip anxiously, considering his words carefully.

"And I remember a girl...Emiko-sama. I think I was her servant. But, I was...we were also..."

He went still suddenly as a dark memory fired itself through his stunned mind.

_"You will not defy me anymore, Byakuya," the brown-eyed man said darkly, looking at where Emiko laid, cooing softly in her bassinet, "I told you I will not allow it."_

_Byakuya looked up at him worriedly._

_"What are you going to do?"_

_Following his gaze, Byakuya realized what was about to happen, and turned to run in the infant's direction. The other man's quick kido spell sent him crashing to the floor, startling the baby and making her give a frightened squeal and start crying._

_"No, don't!" Byakuya cried, "Don't take her..."_

_He struggled against the bonds, but bereft of his powers, he found himself unable to shatter them. His captor picked up the child and left the room without comment. Byakuya struggled to crawl in the direction he had gone, and was nearly to the door, when the other man returned and dragged him roughly to his feet. He shoved him down on his stomach, on the bed, leaning down and holding him painfully in place._

_"Bring her back, you bastard!" he cried, "You said that I..."_

_He reeled as a shock of kido jolted his body, leaving him unable to move and barely capable of drawing a breath._

_"I told you that if you did anything to try to leave here, then you would lose her."_

_"Wh-what have you d-done to her?" Byakuya stammered, panting harshly, "you didn't..!"_

_"I did not kill her, but I am not giving her back to you either. I will keep Emiko as my own child...insurance, if you will, of your cooperation."_

_"I am doing all I can!"_

_"No. I know that you were testing the barriers around this place yesterday. You are so very predictable, Byakuya. But as you have broken the rules, I can not allow that to go unpunished."_

_"But she is just a child! She needs her..."_

_"She will have her father," the man told him, his brown eyes glinting, "She will have me. You...will be her servant."_

_"What?"_

_"And so that you do not try to escape again, I am going to have your mind emptied, Byakuya."_

_"No!"_

_"I will also warn you that if you ever do escape, there is no place that you can hide form me. Wherever you go, whatever you do, whoever helps you, I will find you and I will punish you with her death! Prepare to say goodbye to Kuchiki Byakuya," the man said, drawing a green-hilted sword, "You are about to lose everything that is meaningful to you, until you give me what I want!"_

Byakuya realized suddenly, that he was no longer in his bed, but kneeling in the bathroom and emptying his stomach violently. Ichigo's arm was around him, and the healer knelt on his other side, infusing him with healing energy.

"Wh-what happened?" he managed, then he leaned forward and threw up again.

He fell against Ichigo, his eyes closed and the brown-eyed man's maddeningly calm voice ringing in his ears.

_If you ever do escape, you will not be able to tell him. When you try, my power will inhibit you...and you will 'punish' yourself for trying. No one is ever going to know about her, or about what you know, Byakuya. It will all disappear now...Shatter..."_

He felt Ichigo's hand caressing his back, and felt tears in his eyes, thinking about the girl they had made.

_I have to find her, but that man's spell inhibits me from explaining! I have to find her, but I know they will not let me go. Still...I have to try._

"I think I will be all right now," he said in a shaky voice, starting to stand, then finding himself swept unexpectedly into strong arms.

"What're you doing?" Ichigo chided him gently, "You shouldn't be trying to walk around. You're really sick, Byakuya. But, we're going to make you well. We're going to protect you. And as soon as we can, we'll find your friend, Emiko. I promise."

_You are truly one I think could have won my heart, Ichigo..._

"Arigatou."

Ichigo laughed softly.

"You should be telling me something like, "Put me down, Kurosaki Ichigo! This is unseemly! For a clan leader to be carried about like a new bride being taken over the threshold!"

"If you know that, then why are you doing this?" Byakuya asked, regaining the aristocratic air in his voice for a moment.

"Be quiet, okay? I'm just taking care of you," Ichigo said, smiling in a way that made him go instantly calm again.

"Very well, if it pleases you," he said dryly.

"Hang on," Ichigo chuckled, flash stepping back to the bed.

He set the noble down gently, then surprised Byakuya by waving Torio off and tucking the clan leader in, himself and kissing him warmly on the lips.

"Try to get some rest, all right? I have to go for a while, but Torio and Koji will be here, and Rukia, Tetsuya and Renji will be by to see you later, too."

"Ah," Byakuya answered, not knowing quite how to respond, "That is good."

"Yeah, they'll take good care of you until I get back. Then, we should talk. I'll need to know anything you can tell me about the girl, Emiko. I'd stay and talk to you now, so that we could get the search started faster, but my dad sent a hell butterfly and is all up in arms about something to do with my clan's elders."

"Y-your clan?" Byakuya queried, "You are a noble too?"

"Oh yeah, you don't remember," Ichigo said, shaking his head, "I'm the heir to leadership of the Shiba clan. We found that out while we were recovering in the spirit dimension after..."

"The spirit dimension?"

"Eh, don't worry about it," Ichigo said, turning to leave, "We'll get you all caught up in no time, now that you're conscious. Just...stay here at the manor and don't run off anywhere, okay? Whoever you escaped from might come back and want to try to take you away from us again."

Byakuya's heart skipped almost painfully at the solemn, wounded look in the younger man's eyes as he went on.

"And, I don't want another minute to go by with me not knowing whether you're safe, or even alive, ever again."

_Ichigo. _

_You really do love me, don't you?_

_If not for Emiko, and the spell that inhibits me when I try to tell you..._

_If not for that..._

He laid quietly in his bed, looking out into the gardens and taking slow breaths of fresh air that was sweetly scented with flowers.

A delicate step in his doorway made him turn his head, and his eyes met Tetsuya's as the interim clan leader moved to sit down at his bedside.

"How did you meeting with the elders go?" Byakuya asked softly, "I imagine that they are disappointed with what has been returned to them?"

"Not at all, Cousin," Tetsuya assured him, "They did vote to extend my leadership until you are well enough to lead again, but they are all very relieved that you have been found. Do not worry, Byakuya-sama, all will be well."

Byakuya thought quietly for a moment.

"I am grateful to you for seeing to my obligations faithfully, Tetsuya-sama."

"Wh-what? Byakuya-sama, please, do not refer to me that way. You never use honorifics when speaking to me!"

"But you are the clan leader, even if only for now."

"But that does not change who you are...not to the clan and not to me."

"But you use an honorific when you refer to me," Byakuya objected.

"I am your..."

Tetsuya took his hands and looked deeply into his eyes, stopping him, mid-sentence.

"You once rescued me, when I had spent the first fifteen years of my life as a prisoner. No matter what I do, I will never be able to properly thank you for that. You are my beloved cousin, my rescuer and my leader. I refer to you as I do to honor that."

Byakuya surprised his younger cousin with a warm smile and a soft kiss on his fingertips.

"You honor me with everything you have done since I was taken," he sighed, "You held our family together, and you are still doing that so that I can focus on my recovery. Let us honor that bond, then, by neither of us being so formal. Thank you, Tetsuya. But, there is something I must ask you to do. It is something I will entrust to you, knowing that you will accept and assist me."

Tetsuya looked back at him questioningly.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked curiously.

"I know that I am not recovered yet. But time is short, and my ability to explain is limited for reasons I cannot tell you right now. Tetsuya, I must return to Hueco Mundo."

"What?" Tetsuya gasped, looking alarmed, "Byakuya-sama...!"

"Hear me out," Byakuya said quickly, squeezing his cousin's hands, "This is urgent, and I cannot explain it, but still, I must ask it. I want you to come with me, to act as my protector."

Tetsuya's head tilted, and his blue eyes registered comprehension.

"This is about the girl? It's about Emiko?"

"Yes," Byakuya confirmed, "I can say no more."

"Why not?"

"It is...painful. I am inhibited," Byakuya confessed, not daring to say anything further.

Tetsuya nodded.

"I understand. But, Byakuya-sama, why did you not simply tell Ichigo-sama? He surely would have..."

"Yes, he would have insisted I stay here, and he would have gone and endangered himself. That man would have..."

Byakuya broke off for a moment, pain registering on his face.

"Byakuya, are you all right?"

"Y-yes, but no more talking. Tetsuya, please, we must go now. You have a stallion, ne?"

"Yes, Arashi, but..."

"We must go now. Emiko's life depends on us finding her quickly!"

"Then, Emiko escaped with you?" Tetsuya asked, rising, and helping him out of bed.

"Y-yes, but we were somehow separated. She is just a child. We have to find her before something bad happens to her!"

"But, why not leave it to us, and just..."

"No, I cannot do that. Tetsuya, I must go after her. You said that you owe me, and you can honor that by protecting me and helping me to find my...to find Emiko. Come quickly now. I don't want anyone to try to stop me!"

"I should be the one to stop you," Tetsuya said, looking conflicted, "And I insist that you at least leave a hell butterfly for Ichigo-sama. He loves you, and he was devastated when you disappeared. You cannot hurt him by just disappearing again."

"Very well, then," Byakuya said, nodding as he began to dress.

Tetsuya summoned a hell butterfly and waited as Byakuya whispered a message to it, then sent it on its way. The younger man then, helped his cousin to dress, and the two slipped out into the quiet gardens, where Tetsuya whistled softly for his mount to come to them. A few moments later, Arashi, trotted into the gardens, coming to a stop in front of them. Tetsuya helped Byakuya onto the stallion's back, then climbed up behind him. He touched his heels to the stallion's sides, then opened a senkaimon.

"Again, I am grateful to you, Cousin," Byakuya said as Tetsuya's arms curled around him.

"I think Ichigo will be furious with both of us," Tetsuya said worriedly, "But if you are right, then every moment counts. And that hell butterfly will lead him to us, so we can go ahead and let him catch up when he receives the message. Do not worry, Byakuya. We will find Emiko-chan."

"I hope so," Byakuya sighed, closing his eyes, only to be faced with the dark gaze of the brown-eyed man who had been his captor, "But be diligent, Tetsuya. The one who took us must be very dangerous."

"I will protect you," Tetsuya promised, "I swear to you that I will bring you and Emiko back safely!"


End file.
